FRB brings more refugee tales from abroad - this time of Marjan Al Haddad - another Iraqi whose asylum application has been rejected.

Iraqi refugee Marjan Akram Hassoon Al Haddad arrived to Finland in early September last year, after a car bomb explosion at a police checkpoint in Baghdad two years ago forced the 21 year-old to flee his motherland. The attack that ripped through Baghdad’s Utaifiyya district caused serious injuries to Marjan’s right foot from which he is yet to recover.

Since his arrival into Finland, Marjan has undergone several medical examinations but has been refused medical treatment. As an asylum seeker, Marwan does not qualify for medical treatment under strict government regulations.

The situation was made worse after Marwan’s asylum application was rejected in March last year. Finnish immigration authorities informed Marwan that his condition required no further medical attention and, on that basis, he could safely return to Iraq.

Tighter restrictions on immigration policies issued by the government of Finland last year, has seen thousands of asylum seekers from Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan forcibly returned to their country of origin. ‘Improved security’ across all three war torn nations is the cited reason provided by the Finnish Immigration Service (MIGRI) for not issuing residency permits.​Detonations such as that Marjan fell victim to are commonplace in a country in which war marks every aspect of life. Urban violence in heavily populated areas, and at checkpoints, is a daily occurrence for Baghdad’s resident population.

New year’s day witnessed the loss of a reported 35 civilians after two explosives trucks blasted through the industrial area of Al Sinek and Al Hurriya, west of Baghdad. The following day, an additional 4 explosions ruptured the country.

The risks that civilians face are niether exaggerated or imagined, but the Finnish government continues to issue rejection letters to countless Iraqis that crossed oceans and continents to live peacefully.

Deportation is not the only thing Marjan is battling against. He desperately awaits medical treatment for the maceration and tissue loss caused to the heel of his right foot.

“Botched medical treatment in Iraq has left me needing more surgeries as my wounds continue to reopen, which has severely affected by ability to walk” Marwan expressed in an interview with FRB.

“After I settled in Ruukki, south of Oulu, it was clear that there was still major work to be done. Despite that, I was offered no assistance, nor could I find a humanitarian organisation to support me in my needs. In Iraq I underwent nine operations in total” Marjan said.

When asked about his hopes for the future, Marjan said that he wishes the state of Finland would review its decision, by taking his current state of health into consideration. “I wish to be offered the medical care I need, and as soon as possible”. He added that “from time to time I suffer from skin lesions and infections that must be treated”.

Letter Sent to Marjan by Finnish Authorities

The decision to deport Marjan and others trivialises the dangers of a country void of security. Violence exercised by Islamic State terrorists and other militia actors is only one face of misery in today's Iraq. In Marjan’s case, no specific group claimed responsibility for the blast which prompted his departure.

In addition to unquenchable violence that Iraq’s population encounter daily, rampant corruption and extortion, is denying men and women like Marjan the opportunities they desperately dream of to lead normal lives.

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